r/akira

https://preview.redd.it/jrws2bvzsakh1.png?width=1148&format=png&auto=webp&s=dbefc9df0dea17a60696f4616f73181d6ddbcdea

Reading through the manga again, and this panel always struck me as though I'm missing something. I feel like Neo-Tokyo at night is shown from above in several other places and often there's these patterns that look like... words? (I know they're not.)

But these lines have distinct angles and start and stop points. I don't think they're street lights visible from this high up and I feel like Otomo doesn't do much by accident. Does anyone have any ideas what these lines are or are supposed to represent? Or am I looking for something that isn't there? (A very distinct possibility.)

Thanks in advance for any cool ideas.

First of all, I’d like to establish that I’ve not actually finished the manga yet. I’m a little into volume 5, but decided to rewatch the movie anyway.

I watched it for the first time about 8 years ago, but didn’t remember a lick, and was itching to watch the adaptation.

Before shitting on it, I’ll say that the animation was great; it really captured that dystopian, cyberpunk neo-Tokyo feel. Furthermore, I think, from what I’ve seen so far in the manga, Tetsuo’s mental state was a little more visualised. I also completely understand that a full adaptation of the manga couldn’t be done in just over two hours, so obviously they’d have to condense it.

Despite this, I found myself really disappointed by the adaptation. A lot of the characters felt hollow and lacked any real development. I also feel like Lady Miyako was way too downplayed, and almost presented as the leader of some crazy, existing resistance. The existing revolution makes sense, though, because there is no Akira awakening until the very end. However, I feel this also takes away from the destruction presented in the manga, and the creation of the Tokyo empire which in turn further emphasises the dystopian nature of the series.

The colonel’s character also seems brushed over, and he doesn’t exude that same desperation to prevent the awakening of Akira. While I know this is because Akira is simply taken apart in the anime, it still leads to the whole story feeling hollow.

I don’t like the development of Kaneda and Kei’s relationship, either. Again, they both feel just as rushed and hollow as the others, almost like they go from being strangers to friends within minutes.

I won’t continue, because I feel as though my point has been proven, but there are definetly more characters who I feel were written off: Ryu, Yamagata, Chiyoko (obv), etc etc.

As much as I’d like to talk about the ending, I can’t, since I haven’t actually read the ending to the manga just yet. However, I will say that, despite the animation, I felt that the ending was rather random. I normally enjoy mysterious and unfinalised endings, but this felt flat out dumb. Akira swallows pretty much everything in his initial blast, that’s it.

From what I’ve seen in the manga, Tetsuo’s own awakening that brings back the buildings and people taken by Akira’s seems like a balance between the two powers. It’s even described as ‘a second big bang’ and ‘the birth of a new universe’.

Though, as I said, I may read the ending of the manga and eat my words. If any of you read up to this point, feel free to flame and correct me.

For clarification, I watched the Netflix dub, too, which hurt my soul. That voice acting was awful 🫩

Hey Everyone!
Anyone else searching daily for tickets to be released or even theaters that will be showing this legend? Let’s start a mega thread sharing what we have found.